Isaac Komnenos (Sebastokrator)

Type Figure Region Byzantine Empire Time c. 1093–1152 Also known as Isaac the Sebastokrator

Isaac Komnenos (c. 1093–1152) was the second son of Byzantine emperor Alexios I and the full brother of emperor John II.…

Timeline

c. 1093–1118Constantinople · ThraceIsaac was one of the sons of Alexios I, received his education at court, and participated in his father's military campaigns. After his father's death, his brother John II succeeded to the throne, and Isaac began assisting in governance as a senior noble.
1118–1152Macedonia · MacedoniaAfter John II took the throne, he granted Isaac the title of Sebastokrator, the highest non-imperial title created by the Komnenos dynasty to accommodate imperial family members within the power structure. Isaac received fiefs in parts of Macedonia, holding the dual identity of feudal lord and senior imperial official. Records indicate he made contact with the Seljuk sultan Malik Shah I, provoking John II's suspicions, though it never led to a final break. Among his descendants, Andronikos Komnenos (Andronikos I) later became emperor.

The Cambridge History of the Byzantine Empire, c.500–1492 — Jonathan Shepard (ed.) (2008)
Alexiad — Komnene, Anna; Sewter, E. R. A. (trans.) (2009)